Coffee Flavored Angel
by Yemi Hikari
Summary: Karin enjoys working at the coffee shop owned by Ise Nanao. The white haired fifteen year old isn't like other guys her age having gone to high school with her older brother Ichigo, and now they're both supposed to be graduating college after the winter semester. One day the pressure of being a child genius trying to live up to his father's expectations. Coffee Shop AU
1. Salty Caramel Mocha Frapachino

_Disclaimer – I don't own Bleach. This was written for Wattpad's thirteenth fanfic contest. One was to write a Coffee Shop AU with a favorite pairing with seven-thousand or less words._

 **Coffee Flavored Angel  
 _Salty Carmel Mocha Frapachino_**

The jingle of the bell, and the strong smell of coffee reflected Karin's positive mood as she stepped into the coffee shop she worked. She quickly stepped into the bathroom so she could change from the uniform for high school to the one for the small shop. She donned the apron, and stepped behind the counter next to the owner. Nanao glanced over to the side. "Your boyfriend's here."

A light laugh left Karin's mouth. "I told you Toshiro isn't my boyfriend. He's a classmate of Ichi-nii's that just so happens to be the same age as me."

"He's been here all day." The worried look on the woman's face finally registered with Karin, and she found herself turning her head to look at the table Toshiro always sat at. The fifteen year old was sitting at the table with his knees pulled up, and his school bag down on the ground. Propped on his lap was the usual sketch pad. Usually his hands were constantly moving as he sketched something into his book, but what Karin never found out.

The black haired sixteen year old looked at Toshiro and felt a frown spreading across her face, and the positive mood quickly souring. "Doesn't he have college classes today with Ichi-nii? I know they don't share all of the same classes, but last time I checked Toshiro actually has more then my brother."

"He also never misses class. You should probably ask him what's wrong." The shop owner quickly handed her a coffee she'd just brewed. The high school student could smell

Karin let out a sigh and stepped out from behind the counter letting the door part squeak as she did so. She watched as Toshiro's white head of hair jerked up, and a shocked look spread across his face as if he'd been in some kind of trance. Upon seeing her the sketch pad snapped shut, and he pulled it defensively against his chest as he looked out the clear window at the street down below. Karin carefully set one of the coffees down onto the table.

"Your godmother wants you to try the new coffee flavor she came up with. You are after all our favorite customer."

"Oh."

The sixteen year old narrowed her violet eyes before reaching out and nudging his shoulder causing Toshiro to turn his head so Karin could see his bright teal eyes. "Nanao-san's also worried about you." One corner of the girl's mouth went to the side noticing the visible bags under Toshiro's eyes. "Are you getting enough sleep." The girl cursed the question. " _Of course not. Ichi-nii doesn't get enough sleep either. They're both in college._ "

Toshiro opened his mouth to say something, only for the bells on the front door to jingle. The teen male glanced back at the glass window before burying his chin into his fist. "You've got customers." Karin sighed as she moved to a straight position and popped her neck only for her mouth to twist into a deep frown upon seeing three girls from her school.

Her hands went on her hips. " _What are those three doing here? They're never pleasant to be around._ "

The chair at the table next to her shifted, and she felt a hand suddenly tug at her apron. "Remember they're customers. That's what Aunt Nanao would say to you. That, and don't let your feelings get in the way."

Karin let out a sigh as she looked down at Toshiro to see he was still staring out the window. " _Hypocrite. You're always letting your feelings get in the way although you pretend they don't._ "

Karin headed over to the counter to help Nanao out with the customers. The woman gave her a hopeful look, but the response from her co-worker was a quick shake of the head indicating Toshiro hadn't said anything regarding what was bothering him. The phone rang preventing the woman from saying anything to her, and instead spoke in a light whisper telling someone that " _he was indeed here_ '.

Karin carefully noted the girls orders to make sure she wouldn't mess up, and proceeded to make each order carefully. She watched as the girls decided to take a table near Toshiro's. Karin ground her teeth as she noted the ravenous looks the three cast at the white haired fifteen year old. Thankfully Toshiro didn't notice as he was still staring out the window. She chanced a glance over at Nanao who gave her a wave indicating she should try speaking with Toshiro again. On the way to his table she dropped off the coffees.

She sat down in one of the chairs catty-corner from him. "Your godmother noticed you didn't go to classes today. I also think she was just on the phone with your mom, so I think she's worried about you to. Don't you normally call Rangiku-san between classes?"

Karin watched as Toshiro wrapped his arms tighter around his sketchpad. He continued to look out the window at the street below. "I'm thinking about failing my classes this semester."

The dark haired sixteen year old could fill the corner of her mouth twitch down. "Toshiro. Isn't this the last semester for both you and Ichi-nii? You're supposed to be graduating, and moving on with your lives."

She watched as he visibly swallowed. He nervously turned so he was looking at the coffee Nanao prepared for him, and reached out with one hand while still clutching the sketchpad to his chest in a defensive manner. He took a drink of the coffee, and his muscles relaxed a little bit as a smile spread across his face at the taste. "Yeah... it is for your brother."

"Toshiro..."

"I still haven't figured out whether he wants me to be a doctor, lawyer, or scientist."

Karin swallowed as her eyes widened. "Do... are you talking about your dad?" She glanced away wishing she hadn't mentioned said person. " _I've never met the man, but I know Toshiro hates talking about him. How lame can I get? If I end up upsetting Toshiro here in front of Nanao-san I'm libel to lose my job. Not that I would intentionally upset him. That's what happened to that other girl._ "

"He's the one paying for my college."

"You're not going to school on a scholarship."

"That..." The sudden pause in Toshiro's voice caused Karin to look up only for her head to dart back at the sound of muttering coming from the girls. The girl who was the ring leader of the group kept eying Toshiro like a piece of meat. She glanced back at Toshiro to see he still hadn't noticed the way the girls were acting. Instead he looked at the ground. "The scholarships wouldn't have gotten me into the field he wanted."

"But failing this semester?"

"I want to tell him to just go to hell. There are other things I want to do with my life."

Karin titled her head to the side. "The logical thing to do is just tell him. Actually... have you figured out what you want to do?"

"Art school for one thing." The sound came out as a mutter from Toshiro's mouth.

"Art school." Karin let out a sudden laugh. "The child genius who graduated from high school at the age of twelve and can go to any school he wants, wants to go to art school. What's the other thing?"

Toshiro's head darted up revealing two bright teal eyes filled with hurt. "You can go to hell as well Kurosaki. "

"I..." Karin let out a sigh as the bell for the coffee shop jingled again. "I've customers. Toshiro... I didn't mean..."

"If you're going to think that's ridiculous then you're going to think everything else is."


	2. Black, No Sugar or Creme

**Coffee Flavored Angel  
** _ **Black, No Sugar or Creme**_

The twenty-two year old college student tried rubbing a kink out of his neck muscles. Toshiro hadn't shown up for classes today, nor had he answered any kind of the texts Ichigo had sent the young teen. The oldest Kurosaki teen took a protective attitude towards Toshiro the first day he met him much to the irritation of the white haired youth. Eventually the child prodigy found out Ichigo's younger siblings would have been in the same school year had Toshiro not skipped grades like he did.

Toshiro wasn't the type to miss a day of school unless something serious happened, and a phone call to Rangiku-san told him the boy wasn't home sick with his mother. The only other place he could imagine Toshiro being was his godmother's coffee shop. The place used to not be the teens favorite place, but then Karin started working there. Ichigo sighed as he opened the door remembering a question he posed of Karin once. " _Do you like Toshiro? I don't mean as just a friend._ "

" _As if I'd be so lucky._ "

His sister stood behind the counter filling out orders, and Nanao was on the phone. A grimace spread across Ichigo's face at the panicked tone in the woman's voice. "No. He's _not_ here."

" _Why would Toshiro's dad be calling the shop?_ " Ichigo shook his head and started to turn his neck to look towards Toshiro's usual spot to see if the fifteen year old was actually there. This action was stopped shot by a girl storming up to the counter with an irate look on her face. Ichigo recognized the uniform for Karakura High and knew she was from Karin's school.

"You got the order wrong Kurosaki. Thus you owe us a refund."

Ichigo's teeth ground together seeing the cups of coffee were almost all the way gone as the girl rattled off the order she and her friend placed. Nanao was to busy arguing with Toshiro's father on the phone. " _They're just here to bother Karin._ "

The older Kurosaki sibling had the mind to storm over and defend his sister despite the fact he knew full well she could defend herself. A rather quiet voice from the corner by the glass window beat the older brother to the bunch. "That's not what you ordered."

"Excuse me?" The girl turned to look at Toshiro who had his usual sketchpad in his lap.

"I've an eidetic memory." The white haired youth didn't look the girl in the eye, but simply stared at the sketchpad. Toshiro loathed bringing up that particular talent of his. "You ordered a mango chocolate espresso smoothie, a white chocolate espresso with mint, and a green tea latte. If she had messed up your order you should have said something before you drank nearly everything."

Ichigo let out a sigh of relief, but couldn't push away the fact Toshiro had purposefully skipped class. The fact the fifteen year old wasn't looking meant he could sneak over without Toshiro seeing him do so. He carefully slipped behind the boy to catch a glimpse at what he'd been drawing as the boy flipped through the pictures. Toshiro was undeniably good at drawing like he was everything else, but there was definitely something there which always bothered Ichigo a bit.

The orange haired college student glanced up at his sister as a smirk spread across his face before leaning over so he was right next to Toshiro's ear so only the fifteen year old could hear. "My sister is pretty, isn't she?"

Ichigo saw the white haired teen's face suddenly flush a deep red, and Toshiro began to stammer. "I don't know what you're talking about!"

"Of course you don't!" A laugh escaped Ichigo's lips as he sat down across from Toshiro and set his book bag down in another chair. "I told you that I'm fine with you asking her out." The eldest Kurosaki let out a laugh. "Do I need to have _her_ take you on a date for your sixteenth birthday Toshiro?"

"Seriously don't know what you're talking about." The fifteen year old's voice was tight, and something was obviously bothering him.

"Toshiro..." Ichigo took a deep breath. "Why did you miss class today?" His fingers began to tap the table in frustration. "And you do know what I mean. We've discussed it before."

"What's the point of admitting I like her when he doesn't want me dating."

"Your dad again?" Ichigo let out a deep sigh. "You shouldn't let that creep get to you Toshiro."

"He's not a creep. He's..."

"You can't even call the man dad in any form."

"It's not as if I've ever been able to make his expectations."

"Hell..." Ichigo let out a string of curses before continuing. "Any dad whose not happy with their kid graduating high school at the age of twelve and graduating college with a triple major is not worth it." The young man let out a sigh. "Speaking of which, I have to honestly ask if the reason you skipped classes is because you finally burned out like I warned you about when you decided to take on the triple major. You look kind of sick, and I'm surprised you didn't burn out sooner. Hell, I'm surprised the college even let you do a triple major."

Toshiro remained silent and simply stared out the window. Ichigo finally reached across the table and nudged the white haired teen for an answer. Said answer was shocking. "I'm thinking of failing this semester."

The orange haired Kurosaki leaned back as he folded his arms across his chest. "Why? Because you're burned out?"

"No."

Karin came over then with a coffee. Ichigo glanced up with a frown. "I didn't order yet, nor have I payed."

"The store manager says that's for keeping a certain someone company. You _always_ order the same thing, so it was easy to put together."

Ichigo hoped Toshiro would ask Karin out, but the boy simply continued to look down at his sketchpad. The pad was notably closed so Karin couldn't see, and when she left he opened it back up. For once though he didn't try drawing anything. The twenty-two year old let out a sigh. "Give me a reason Toshiro as to why you're wanting to fail this semester, and make it good."

"It's the only way I could think of to tell him to go to hell."

Ichigo felt his facial features soften as he took a drink of his coffee. "Stupid."

"I am not!"

"Yes, you are. For such a genius you didn't think of the most obvious, not to mention the _thing_ I know you want most. Since your dad apparently doesn't want you dating you should just go ahead and ask Karin out. I'm fine with it and, your mother is constantly teasing you about it." Ichigo watched as Toshiro began to worry the inside of his mouth. "What? Isn't it a good idea?"

"I don't know."

"You won't know if you don't try Toshiro."

"She'll just laugh. She'll laugh like she did when I told her I want to go to art school."

"Art..." A silence fell over the room.

"I know I'm not that good, but I know I enjoy drawing." Toshiro kept looking from his sketchpad to the glass window. "You also aren't incorrect in say I've burned out. It's just not a matter of me not being able to do the classes or the class load. I simply don't want to do it. I don't want to be a scientist, I don't want to be a doctor, and I most certainly don't want to be a lawyer. That's what he wants me to do."

"Has he ever praised you for anything?"

"Not that I can recollect. You'd think it wouldn't matter with the fact I'm lucky if I get to see him once a month. Most of the time it's every other month."

"Are you sure Karin laughed at the idea of you going to art school."

"She said, " _art school... the child genius who graduated from high school at the age of twelve and can go to any school he wants, wants to go to art school._ "

"Man. You're really bad at reading the situation." Ichigo watched as Toshiro looked up at him in confusion. "She's just amazed that you're able to go to any school you want, and if you were to choose the one you wanted it would be art school." The twenty-two year old let out a laugh as a calloused hand reached up to rub the back of her head. "It is rather ironic. You have the choice of every school _except_ the one you really wanted. Talk about bad luck kid."

"I'm not..." Toshiro took a deep breath. "I guess I owe her an apology for getting mad like I did."

Ichigo pointed a finger at the fifteen year old. "You owe my sister a date. Use this as an opportunity to ask her out."

"But..."

The twenty-two year old stood up. "I'm going to go and use the restroom, so I would appreciate it if you would watch my stuff."


	3. Green Tea with Lemon

**Coffee Flavored Angel  
** _ **Green Tea with Lemon**_

Toshiro's mouth opened to protest what Ichigo said, but for some reason the words didn't come out at all. A voice at the back of his head told him, no, begged him to ask Karin out. A pale bone thin hand flipped his sketchpad to the picture where he drew the dark haired, violet eyed sixteen year old with angel wings. " _She's my guardian angel, the first kid my age to accept me for who I am. The fact she accepts my quirks doesn't though mean she wants to date me. I wish Ichi-nii would realize that._ "

The boy leaned his head back as he shut the sketchpad. His legs were becoming stiff from sitting in the same position for hours on end, but he didn't wish to move out of the comforting position for long. One hand left his sketch pad as he slowly began to work the feeling back into one leg, and then the other. " _Aunt Nanao is likely going to lecture me about just sitting here._ "

His teal eyes blinked a couple of times at seeing the worried look on her face. She'd finally gotten off the phone with who ever she'd been talking with, and she slid out from behind the counter. His eyes darted down knowing she would likely lecture him then and there. "Karin told me you're thinking of failing your classes."

" _Blabber mouth._ " Toshiro looked up in time to see Nanao grabbing the coffee to see the cup was empty.

"Did you like that flavor? If so I can bring you another."

"I'll pay this time. You..."

"Don't worry about it." Nanao stood up. "You've always been good at paying when you come. Today though... I get the fact you're dealing with those pent up feelings regarding Ichimaru. It's honestly about time."

"Kurosaki says I should just ask Karin out as my way of telling him to go to hell rather then failing all of my classes this semester."

"About time on that to. Isn't there still time to drop your classes instead of failing? I'm not saying not to do that if you feel it's the route to go, but..."

"But what?"

"It would have honestly made more sense to do this when you started rather then at the very end."

"I've got to decide what to do next though. Kurosaki and everybody else... they've known what they want to do since we graduated high school. They've been allowed to do what they want. Even Hinamori got to do what she wanted."

Toshiro watched as Nanao blanched. "Your foster sister isn't exactly doing something productive with her life."

"You mean going to art school." The boy watched as Nanao blinked. "Karin didn't tell you that part, did she?"

"Karin... no. I'm not talking about the art school either." His godmother held up her finger indicating Karin should bring another of that particular flavor.

"Then what?" Toshiro frowned when she got. " _What trouble has nee-chan gotten into this time?_ "

"I guess the best way to put it is her lack of focus and drive when it comes to anything she does. Don't let her be a role model for you." Nanao leaned back. "I love your art work, and you have quite a bit of drive. You could go to art school, but..." Karin came over and set the coffee onto the table before slipping away. Nanao's mouth creased. "Did she do something to upset you? Because if she did..."

"I did something to upset her." Toshiro looked out the window in order to avoid making eye contact with his godmother. "You were saying?"

"I was saying you could go to art school, but..." Nanao found herself interrupted again. This time one of the high school girls came and held up a paper bill. "What?"

"I'd like to have what he's having."

"It's not exactly on the menu."

"If he's had two then it must be good."

Toshiro looked up to see the girl was from Karakura High School, only for his eyes to dart down and to the side when she tried making eye contact with him. " _No. That was more then just eye contact._ "

When Nanao brought back the girl's coffee and change she simply sat down in one of the seats across from him. "Is Kurosaki's older brother, like your tutor or something?"

"What?" The strange question caused Toshiro to look up and make eye contact with the girl. He glanced over to see if either Nanao, Karin or Ichigo could come to his rescue. Ichigo wasn't yet back from the restroom, and the other two were busy with customers again. He found himself swallowing.

"That's why he's here with you. What high school do you go to?"

" _I went to the same one you're going to now._ " The white haired fifteen year old glanced down and didn't see the next person to come through the door, nor did he hear the sound Nanao made. "That..."

"Are you planning on going to art school when you graduate?" The girl stood up and yanked the sketchpad from his hands.

"Wait!" Toshiro stood up as his chest began to tighten, and in the process knocked over both his and Ichigo's coffees. He could hear the dark liquid pooling on the top of the table spilling down on the other side onto the twenty-two year old college students book bag, and he felt his cheeks redden. They reddened even more as the girl opened his sketch book. " _She goes to school with Karin. That's..._ "

Whatever thought crossed his mind went out the window as the smile on the girl's face fell. " _Her_?" The girl let out a sound of disgust. "You're not very good at this are you?" Two bright teal eyes fell to the table top as his arms trembled. He could hear the pages continuing to turn, and then even more disgust in her voice. "What an ugly angel."

Toshiro heard the sound of ripping, and his head darted up as his skin turned white. "Not that one!"

The sketchpad hit the floor with a thud as the girl let go and began to tear the paper to shreds. The fifteen year old watched as she opened the top of her coffee and shoved the pieces in. Everything in Toshiro's vision went blank as he wondered if this day could get any worse, and his head fell as his body continued to tremble. " _This is why I 'hate' interacting with kids my age. Except Karin._ "

A loud resounding smack from someone hitting the girl across the cheek caused his vision to clear, and he looked up to see who'd come to his rescue.


	4. White Chocolate Latte

From the counter Karin saw the girl from her school finally make a move, and in the pit of her stomach she didn't like what the girl was doing one bit. The dark haired sixteen year old knew Toshiro not being comfortable with the situation was the only thing bugging her, but the fact she was a little bit jealous. " _I don't have the guts to instigate anything with Toshiro. We've been friends for to long and I really don't want to ruin that._ "

Nanao came back from delivering the girl's coffee. "I don't like that girl. I know she's hitting on Toshiro, but I can't do anything about it unless he indicates he wants my help, or the situation gets serious. I hope your brother gets out of the restroom in time to do something. That kid honestly handles your Ichigo butting in much better then he does me or his mom."

Karin pushed her lips together noticing that what ever conversation the girl was having with the girl went onto a tangent Toshiro didn't like as he was already glancing out the window in an attempt to avoid eye contact. A customer with silver hair suddenly came through the door causing Nanao to curse under her breath. Karin turned her head to look at her boss. "What?"

The older woman whispered so only her young employee could hear. The man was dressed in traditional clothing, and was managing to draw a few stares. "I specifically told him Toshiro _wasn't_ here. _Why_ then is he here of all places?"

Karin turned her head back to see the man was looking right at Toshiro with pale teal eyes. The resemblance between the two caused something to click as she turned her head back to Nanao. "His dad? I don't understand. Why is his dad looking for him?"

"He told me over the phone that since Toshiro is still a minor he gave clear instructions to the college telling them they were to call him if any classes were missed."

"Toshiro's dad's that strict." Karin watched as the woman worried her lip.

"Strict. not the word I would use. Perhaps controlling? I doubt Rangiku agreed to that as she has sole custody of Toshiro."

The sixteen year old opened her mouth to say something about how it didn't make sense how the man could control Toshiro like he did, but flinched as she glanced back in time to see the high school girl grab Toshiro's notebook. Nanao spoke loud enough that the white haired man could hear her. "I told you Toshiro wasn't here."

"Ran told me he was."

"She needs to learn to lie to you."

The man gave her a cold glare just as the cups of coffee tipped over. Karin knew the situation was worsening as the girl began to look at the sketchpad, and another tinge of jealousy came over her. She made for the door to the counter only for the man to hold up his hand. "Don't."

"Are you making Toshiro handle this himself?" Nanao let out a few curses, and it hit Karin that she only ever heard the woman curse when it came to Toshiro's father.

The girl's face twisted up as if something disgusted her, and she said something to the white haired fifteen year old to make him look down at the table. His arms were shaking indicating the situation was getting to the point it was to much for him to handle, and some of the other customers were staring. From all the way over at the counter the sound of paper ripping was heard. Karin took a deep breath as she fought back the urge to leap over the counter to slap the girl.

To her surprise the silver haired man moved across the floor with a speed she didn't expect of someone wearing traditional Japanese sandals. The man moved to backhand the girl, but a quick flash of orange was seen. Nanao breathed a sigh of relief as Ichigo intercepted the backhand. Despite this the aura didn't dissipate and from Toshiro's point of view the girl really did end up smacked in the face. Karin took a deep breath. " _You wanted to do that yourself._ "

"Ichimaru..." Ichigo glanced down at the dripping coffee before letting out a deep breath. "I'd ask why you're here bothering Toshiro, but it seems like you stepped in when you were needed to."

Karin took a deep breath and grabbed some towels to clean up the mess. This allowed her to approach the table in time to see that the white haired fifteen year old was losing it more now that his father had shown up. The corners of her mouth twisted down as she saw that Toshiro's teal eyes were beginning to water meaning he was close to completely losing it. She stepped over to begin cleaning up the mess only for the man to grab the towel from her.

"Wait... that's..."

"Leave."

"But..." Ichigo quickly tugged on her shoulder as he pulled her away from the mess.

"Don't. Ichimaru's not someone you want to get on the bad side of."

"What? Did he hit Rangiku-san and Toshiro? Is that why's he's not around."

"No. He's just... over protective of Toshiro."

"Nanao-san said he was over controlling."

"That to. He doesn't know you Karin so there is no telling what he'll do to you if he thinks you're upsetting Karin. I've found myself on the wrong end of his punch because he didn't know me and thought Toshiro was in danger."

"Isn't he over reacting?"

"He's always like this." Nanao worried her lip. "That child's always acted less of a kid then his father and it is a pain in the ass."

"Do you want me to call Rangiku?" Ichigo glanced back at the table.

"No. She actually was the one who told him Toshiro was here." The older female's mouth twisted slightly to the side as she tried figuring out what to do about the situation.

Karin flinched as the man came back and dropped the wet towel. Toshiro's godmother's frustration quickly grew.

"How much coffee has he had to today?"

"Today? The one he spilled was supposed to be his second, but I think most of it ended up spilled. You aren't going to lecture me about how he's not old enough for coffee again? He's almost sixteen you know." Nanao put the towel in the bin before cleaning up the bits of coffee.

The man looked up at the menu as a frown spread across his face. "That's not on the menu."

"I dropped that from the menu when things ended between you and Ran."

"Unfortunately it's the only coffee I've ever tried here. I need to speak to Shiro-chan about skipping classes today."

"He's a college student."

"Who's also fifteen and under normal circumstances would be a freshman in high school."

The man remained silent until Nanao gave in. "One order of..."

"Two." The silver haired man payed for the drinks and headed over to the table. He picked up the sketchpad and began to look up at it. Karin picked up the drinks her boss finished so the woman wouldn't have to deal with the man. She felt her mouth twist up as the man finally said something to Toshiro about the sketches. "Creepy."


	5. Dark with a Dash of Cinnamon

**Coffee Flavored Angel  
 _Dark with a Dash of Cinnamon_**

Getting the call from the college regarding the fact Toshiro hadn't shown up for class left an unpleasant feeling in Gin's chest. Rangiku always called the school when their child ended up to sick to go to class, and they weren't to call under said situation. Toshiro started hanging out at Nanao's place a lot during the last school year, and Gin blamed Ichigo. The orange haired teen, now college student, was the one person the man knew Toshiro hung out with, so anything bad had to be blamed on the boy.

Nanao of course denied the fact the fifteen year old was at her place, but a call to Rangiku due to having no other ideas of where to look for their son revealed Toshiro really was at the coffee shop. To make matters worse he'd been their all day, and his ex-girlfriend's best friend felt the need to lie to him. He walked out of the exhibition and ignored the person trying to lecture him about getting his priorities straight due to his position within the family.

He arrived at the shop and smelled the strong smell of coffee and remembered the time he'd come here with Rangiku. Kyoraku and Ukitake still ran the shop, and for a brief while Gin was able to work at the place to escape the problems he was trying to escape. Eventually though they caught up with him. The familiar feeling though didn't do anything to relax the panicked feeling in his chest, and the feeling became worse as he watched a situation unfold between his son and a girl around Toshiro's age.

The next thing he knew Ichigo was stopping him from back slapping the girl, and then he was cleaning up the coffee mess while Nanao and Ichigo watched from a distance. Gin's pale eyes took notice of the dark haired female that his ex-girlfriend's best friend employed. The need to take care of Toshiro superseded everything else. The table was clean, and he ordered the drink he and Rangiku bonded over. " _Not as if that would really help matters._ "

The sketchpad still lay on the floor as his son sat their staring at the now dry table. Somehow the boy had managed to sit down on his own, and despite Gin's best efforts the corner still reeked of spilled coffee. He opened the book, and found Toshiro to have quite the natural gift for drawing. He then noticed every single picture in the sketchpad was of the girl behind the counter. He let out a sigh as he came to the last picture. "Creepy."

Gin looked up in time to see Toshiro visibly flinch at the comment, and the girl slam down the two cups of coffee. "You're an absolute jerk. The fact you don't like Toshiro drawing during his free time doesn't give you the right to treat him like trash."

The sketchpad lowered to the silver haired man's lap as he looked at the girl. He then looked back at his son who wasn't paying any attention at this point to what was going on visably. One bone thin hand held the sketchpad up as he flinched his head away so he wouldn't have to look her in the eye when she found out his son was stalking her. "Take a look."

Toshiro's head jerked up in a panic, and Gin found himself having to grab the coffees so they wouldn't spill over the table again. "No! Why did..."

"I can't." The girl moved to give the sketchpad back to Toshiro.

Gin's hand shot up to prevent her from doing so. "Don't. You need to take a look at his drawings before you say I was wrong for saying what I did."

The girl looked at the two rather reluctantly before taking the time to open up the sketchpad. Her eyes widened slightly when she looked at the first picture while Toshiro looked out the window nervously. The fifteen year old still worried his bottom lip when he knew he'd done something wrong like he did when he was a toddler. "I don't see what's creepy about his drawings. You're actually pretty good."

"I don't need you to lie to me Karin." Toshiro rested his chin in the palm of his hand, and refused to look her in the eye. "You heard that girl who was in here with her friends a few minutes ago. She quite clearly stated the pictures I drew were ugly."

The silver haired man's shoulders relaxed slightly upon hearing the girl was indeed gone. He watched as this Karin person flipped a few more pages before drawing her breath. "Toshiro..."

"Are you going to tell me the truth?"

"Are all the pictures you drew of me?"

Gin watched as his son's cheeks heated up a bright red. He folded his arms across his chest. Toshiro glanced away before stammering out his answer. "Most of what I've drawn lately... yes."

"I see." The girl handed the teen back his sketchpad. "That girl from my school Toshiro doesn't like me so she likely didn't like the fact all of the pictures you drew were of me, so don't believe what she said. This said..." Karin turned to glare at the teen's father. "...Why did you have to say that about Toshiro's pictures are creepy. They're rather... nice."

The silver haired man took a drink of his coffee. "Every picture he drew in that sketchbook of his is of you. How is that not creepy?"

The answer Gin received from her wasn't the answer he was hoping for. "Is it really creepy for a guy to draw a ton of pictures of his girlfriend?"

Two pale eyes noticed the nervous tone Karin used as well as how his son's cheeks heated up anymore. "Nothing. The problem is the two of you aren't actually dating, and you're trying to cover for him." The man's bony fingers tapped the table in a steady rhythm. "Don't you understand Toshiro's stalking you at your work place?"

"I wouldn't have this job if Toshiro hadn't asked Nanao-san for a favor when I entered high school."

A ton of thoughts spilled through Gin's head as he tried figuring out the puzzle. "Hold on a sec." The sound of the silver haired man getting up didn't phase Toshiro, but the look Nanao gave did phase his father. The man still decided to approach her. "Nanao... can I ask a question?"

His head darted back to look at the two teens, and a sigh escaped the woman's lips. "Seriously? It's obvious they like each other."

"That..." A sigh escaped Gin's mouth. "How long? It's been over a year hasn't it?"

Ichigo's tone of voice indicated his high level of frustration with the man. "My sister and Toshiro have been crushing on each other since they first met. They were ten at the time, and it was around this time of year. That means six years now."

"Six?" Gin could feel his shoulders relax.

"You would know these things if you spent more time with him."

The man headed back to his table letting Nanao get back to work. He sat down across from his son while Karin headed back to the counter. She continued to keep her eye on Gin as much as Nanao did. "Hey?"

"What?"

"I need to know why you skip classes. I want the truth." The man watched Toshiro glance over to the other three. "Toshiro."

"I want to date Karin, and I want to go to art school."

"You've wanted to do this for six years now?"

"Six?" The fifteen year old's bright teal eyes widened. "No. It's more like two to three years. I've been thinking about it since the last year in high school."

"Are you telling me I wasted money these last three years?" Gin could feel his vocal cords tighten as he tried making it so those at the counter wouldn't hear.

He watched as Toshiro's facial features paled. The white haired teen began to stammer again. "I... I know you want me to become a doctor, or a lawyer, or a scientist. I don't know which, but I honestly..." The boy looked away. "... can't do it."

"Toshiro..." Gin took a deep breath wondering how to say what he wanted to the boy. "Can I see your sketchpad and a pencil for a second?" He watched as the boy hesitated, and then pushed the objects towards his father. He picked both items up as the teen looked out the window again. "Has... has your mother ever told you what I do for a living?"

"No. She simply says your an esteemed sensei." The boy looked away not noticing what Gin was doing with the sketchpad. "She said I wasn't ever supposed to show you what I've drawn."

Neither said anything else until Gin finished what he was doing. He then took a deep breath as he shut the sketchpad. "You've never had an art lesson, right? You taught yourself?"

"Yeah. Momo gave me a sketchpad once. I found I enjoyed it as much in the same manner I eventually found I enjoyed playing soccer with Karin."

"I see." Gin looked down at the picture he drew of Rangiku and Toshiro. The child in the picture though was no longer the tiny baby. He pushed the sketchpad back. "Take a look."

"I don't want..." Toshiro blanched when he saw his father look him in the eye. He carefully opened up the sketchpad, and the way his eyes widened delighted the silver haired man. "What is this?"

"That is your mother and you when you were a baby."

"That's not." The look of awe switched to one of betrayal. "Why did you have a problem with me doing art work?"

"I didn't even know you were interested until now." Gin watched the expression on his face carefully. "Rangiku..."

"Don't blame ka-chan."

"No. She knows though what my families like. She knew I'd worry, and do something stupid if she told me you were interested in art." The man folded his arms into his sleeves. "Getting you into an art school isn't a problem, but if they find out you're my kid it will be hard on you."

"How can that be harder then going to high school at the age of ten."

"Touche." Gin looked at the ceiling. "If I say yes I want you to promise me you'll finish this semester and get your degree."

"I promise. Also..."

The silver haired man looked down to see his face blushing slightly. A deep sigh left his lips as he picked up his coffee. He walked over to Nanao and held out a bill as he looked at Karin who had moved away from the counter. "When she goes on her break can you get two more of those coffees? It's my treat."

The bell then jingled as he left the shop, and the smell of coffee finally relaxed him.


End file.
